Nearly 100 students gathered at the Memorial Tower as the clock chimed the alma mater Thursday to participate in what is the first of many events protesting the budget cuts to higher education.
The walk-out and rally event was organized primarily by alumnus Peter Jenkins and hosted by Baton Rouge Organizing, a local advocacy group.
Jenkins said they were happy with the turnout considering the event was organized in only a week. They expect a bigger turnout for future events because there is more time to spread the word.
“This is just the beginning,” Jenkins said.
Upon arriving, students were handed a paper listing the phone numbers of state legislators and a script for what to say when calling.
At the start of the rally, organizers encouraged students to call legislators and leave voicemails. Laptops were also set up for students to email their representatives.
Some students’ classes were canceled for the rally and they were receiving extra credit for attending.
Speakers at the rally included Jenkins, 2015 Homecoming Queen Bianca Webb, LSU alumni Joan Broussard and Joseph Coco, and communications studies professor Bryan McCann.
At the rally, speakers were not focused only on the University, but the effects of budget cuts to higher education throughout the state.
“It’s a thing where we have to understand that this isn’t just about LSU, this is about Louisiana as whole,” Coco said. “If LSU goes under, if Southern goes under, if Grambling, McNeese, all these different places go under, nobody wins.”
McCann started off his address to students with a joke, saying how it was ironic that as a professor, he spoke to a group of students skipping class and talked about the role students have to play in the legislative decision on the cuts.
“It’s impossible to understate the role that student activists have to play in this current mess,” McCann said. “Being annoying, being loud, being consistent, and continuing to show up is how change happens.”
Human resource education sophomore Jaron Bertrand said she came to the rally to support the University and her peers and because it is important to let legislators know students care.
“Something needs to be said, and we need to be heard,” Bertrand said. “I hope they don’t ignore it. I hope they actually read what we say and do something about it.”
Webb, who is graduating in May, said one of her main concerns is the future students in higher education.
“The TOPS program allows some of those kids to be able to create a better future for themselves,” Webb said. “I’m not just concerned about me. I’m concerned about the ones who are going to be basically molding and creating Louisiana’s future.”
While there may have been people who disagreed with their methods, Jenkins said they were happy with how the event turned out and that walk-outs have been used throughout the history of student activism.
McCann said while faculty and staff can play their roles, students are the real catalyst in making changes.
“History tells us the voice and organizational abilities of students, there’s no substitute for it,” McCann said. “My expectation is that when enough of those voices gather and make enough noise, it’s going to be impossible to ignore.”